When the school bell rang on Wednesday to start the 2008-09 school year in the West Elk school district, students will be greeted by several new faces.

At Severy Elementary School, Pam Leiker is the school principal. Leiker (pronounced LIE-ker) comes to Severy after serving as a teacher and principal in the Liberal, Kan., area.
Cynthia Foster will teach second grade at Severy. The Winfield native earned her bachelor’s degree from Newman University before spending the 2007-08 school year as a substitute teacher in the Winfield school system.

At West Elk Jr.-Sr. High School, Corey Reese is the new school principal, replacing John Ireland, who accepted a principal position in Chase County. Reese comes to West Elk after serving as an assistant principal and athletic director in the Council Grove school district.

Juli Young joins the school as the assistant principal. Young is no stranger to the Elk County area, having previously spent 14 years at Elk Valley High School in Longton. Prior to her stint at Elk Valley, Young was a teacher and coach at Riley County High School in Riley, Kan.

Kyle Williams, a Quapaw, Okla., native, comes to West Elk from Wichita. He will spend 2008-09 as a social studies teacher. Williams also will serve as a junior high football coach and assistant men’s basketball coach.

Bobbie Qualls will teach family and consumer sciences at West Elk. She has 28 years of teaching experience under her belt, having previously taught in Oklahoma schools. She is a native of Prague, Okla.

Mike Miller is a familiar face to West Elk Jr.-Sr. High School. He previously was employed through the Chautauqua County/Elk County Special Education Cooperative. This year, he will serve as a counselor at West Elk Jr.-Sr. High School.

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